Once Lost, Now Found
by ranestar
Summary: Kakashi feels he's been missing something in his life. Up until now he didn't know what it was.


Short Story, KakaIru

Kakashi had just returned from a rather strenuous mission of guarding some kind of noble from the Hidden Village of the Mist and all he wanted to do was soak in a hot tub with one of his romance novels. Naruto and Sakura were always bugging him about his books and that he seemed more involved with the fictional characters than real people. Certainly his younger teammates had some friend or family member helping them unwind after a hard day's work. Kakashi couldn't relax just yet though; he had reports to file and food to prepare. Iruka would have his hide if he was late in handing in yet another report. So Kakashi picked up a pen, which, purely by chance, was pink. He didn't realize this of course until the report was finished. Kakashi really didn't feel like redoing the whole paper so he started out towards the school, where Iruka often stayed later marking papers and filing reports.

"Oh, hey there Kakashi." Iruka said casually when Kakashi entered the classroom; he was too preoccupied reading an essay by a student of his to bother with formalities.

Kakashi stood and watched as Iruka searched for the red pen he had tucked behind his left ear. Kakashi stepped forward to retrieve the 'missing' pen. Iruka blushed as Kakashi handed it to him and then resumed marking. Kakashi couldn't help but notice how Iruka was licking his lips ferociously as he circled errors and wrote comments. A piece of his mousy brown hair fell across his eyes and was sticking to his forehead. "Oh, why don't you just put that report right over there," Iruka motioned to the top of a filing cabinet. "and I'll take a look once I'm done here."

Kakashi couldn't do much else but comply. Besides it wasn't so bad watching Iruka act this mousy and withdrawn. They had been pretty good friends when they were younger. They played games together, stayed over at each other's houses and talked about girls. That was, until they turned 16. A week after Iruka's 16th birthday, he had told Kakashi, and everyone else, that he was gay. That was when they kind of just drifted apart. Kakashi started hanging out with Asuma and Iruka with Gai. Gai was quite open minded about the matter and for the rest of their teen years you could often catch Iruka and him kissing in an alleyway or feeding each other at the ramen shop. When Gai decided that he preferred women, Iruka just buried himself in paperwork and teaching. Kakashi never really cared either way, though he did miss the bond they used to have sometimes.

But at this particular moment Kakashi couldn't quite describe what he was feeling towards Iruka. As he watched his former best friend, the feeling of confusion rose inside him until he excused himself to use the bathroom. Actually, Kakashi didn't know why he was waiting around for Iruka to look over the report, he could very well check in with him at a later date. After Kakashi had relieved himself, he walked slowly about the hallways, reminiscing the days he and Iruka would play hooky together. Iruka would usually whine about getting in trouble and Kakashi promised he would take all the blame if they were caught. Which they were, twice in fact. Iruka felt so guilty afterwards he refused to do anything that would put either of them in danger of being punished. When Kakashi reached the class room Iruka was standing over the filing cabinet, one sleeve rolled up and the other ink stained and wrinkled. As Kakashi approached him he became all too aware of his stench and the grime that covered him. He should have at least splashed some water on his face in the bathroom. _That's the price you pay for being male though._ Kakashi thought to himself, chuckling at the truth in it. "Think pink, eh?" Iruka tapped the piece of paper with his knuckles.

Kakashi laughed, slightly embarrassed, "Yeah, s'pose so."

And then the strangest thing happened. They both just stood there staring at each other. Not awkwardly, just…like it was normal. Iruka coughed suddenly. "I better put this away, everything looks to be in order." He said, smiling brightly.

As Iruka turned, it dawned on Kakashi that this is what he had been missing all those years, this was why he thought of relationships often and studied them like a religion by reading his romantic novels. Before Kakashi knew it, he was pulling his mask down and stepping towards Iruka and grabbing his waist. "Iruka, I've missed you." He bluntly stated and pressed his mouth firmly against his companion.

Iruka's eyes widened at first, and then he softened, getting lost in the kiss. "I-I've been missing you since my 16th birthday." He replied, pulling away slightly. "But, what will everyone else think?"

Kakashi only paused for a moment then said, "I don't care what they think. I only want you."

And that was the truth.


End file.
